CALABASAS, Calif., May 22, 2006

Strix Systems, the leader in high-performance wireless mesh networking, today announced that Citi WiFi Networks has selected Strix’s Access/One Outdoor Wireless System (OWS) to create Florida’s first public/private partnership by deploying a citywide wireless mesh network in the city of Dunedin. This robust and highly scalable network will provide wireless broadband Internet access to Dunedin’s businesses, city offices, marina, tourists, and 38,000 residents. Already 25 percent complete, the network is expected to spur economic development and reduce the city’s fixed costs. Upon completion the city’s wireless mesh network will cover 10.4 sq. miles.

“Citi WiFi partnered with Strix because its multi-radio, multi-RF approach to mesh networking is extremely scalable and affordable, it gives us many deployment options, and it will allow us to add more services in the future,” said Frank McCarthy, president of Citi WiFi Networks. “We believe that the advantages of Strix’s approach boil down to containing the cost per square mile, which allows for cost effective deployment of services and enables us to capture the maximum possible service revenue per square mile. If you want to deploy broadband service now and add IP, multimedia, and VoIP applications in the future, you have to build a network today that can deliver the throughput and low-latency to support such applications tomorrow.”

Even before the network became operational, reaction to it was enthusiastic. Hundreds of subscribers signed up for the new service, at no obligation, via a pre-subscription link on Citi WiFi’s web site. This helped the company to determine the best locations for installing nodes and test for signal strength outside each residence as the nodes went up. Citi WiFi anticipates a healthy take rate from residences, mobile professionals such as real estate agents, and owners of boats at the local marina, as well as from tourists, since the price for access is less than the price of access at hotels.

The City of Dunedin will use Strix OWS to connect the city’s dozen or so buildings for less than the cost of a wired network. The network will also make city inspectors and other mobile employees more productive by enabling them to access the fixed network via VPNs. The water department, the biggest component of the city infrastructure, is considering replacing the city’s aging water meters with wireless meters. The Strix OWS will allow Dunedin to backhaul the meters’ output to the water department, eliminating the need to read water meters on site.

“Dunedin is an excellent example of how Strix OWS can address the widely varying communications needs of a municipality’s constituents,” said Jim Mooreland, vice president of worldwide sales at Strix. “Citi WiFi is taking advantage of the power, flexibility, and scalability of our solution to build a wireless mesh network that meets current needs and can keep evolving to meet future needs.”

Strix OWS Selected After Extensive Testing
     
Citi WiFi Networks performed extensive testing on mesh networks from five different vendors before selecting Strix’s solution. The company was particularly impressed with the ability of Strix OWS to maintain a high node-to-node throughput and low latency across multiple hops. Other vendor products tested in the same multi-hop configuration could only provide 1 Mbps service and
     
several could provide no bandwidth at all after only three hops, while the Strix OWS maintained high performance levels all the way through. One Mbps capacity is sufficient for email but not for high-bandwidth services such as IPTV and other multimedia applications. Nor is 1 Mbps sufficient to support seamless hand-off for roaming. Strix also offers Citi WiFi a great deal of flexibility with
     
regard to antennas, configuration, and network design, all very important considerations in Dunedin, which has many large mature trees that can obstruct radio signals.

The Dunedin network is unique in that the Strix nodes are installed on utility poles owned by a private power company, Progress Energy. Citi WiFi broke new ground by entering into an agreement with Progress Energy to place nodes on its poles. To date, wireless mesh nodes have been installed on light poles owned by municipalities, which thus have the freedom to place nodes
      wherever they wish.

“Citi WiFi’s ultimate goal is to create ubiquitous Wi-Fi coverage in Pinellas County, where Dunedin is located; all over the Tampa Bay area; and across the State of Florida,” said Mike Sheaffer, COO of Citi WiFi Networks. “We’re working with several cities in Florida and recently ranked first in West Palm Beach’s invitation to negotiate for a wireless mesh network.”

* Strix Access/One Outdoor Wireless System (OWS)      (http://www.strixsystems.com/product-detail.aspx?look=1)
* Strix Wireless Mesh Network Solutions      (http://www.strixsystems.com/solutions.aspx)
* Citi Wifi Networks      (http://www.citiwifi.com/)
* Dunedin Florida      (http://www.dunedingov.com/)

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Strix's Access/One OWS modular mesh products deliver the largest capacity (up to six radios and 768 users per node, three to six times the norm), highest throughput (five times the norm at 35 Mbps), and best scalability (users can add more radio boards, 4.9GHz, WiMAX modules, or new technologies). An independent wireless mesh test sponsored by Light Reading and completed in June 2006 found Strix’s OWS 2400-30 delivers the best throughput and capacity, the greatest scalability for voice applications, and the best mobility/roaming.  Strix networks scale to 10 or more wireless hops with near-zero throughput loss and latency.  Customers can deliver real-time applications with a minimum of wired connections for a given area, which reduces CapEx and OpEx.

Strix Systems is the proven worldwide leader in wireless mesh networking. Strix’s Access/One products are the industry’s only modular (chassis-based) mesh systems, delivering the highest throughput, lowest latency, greatest capacity and unparalleled scalability.  This new generation of products provides the broadband mobility and reach to support voice, video, and data applications. Sold globally by a network of first-class distributors and integrators, Access/One solutions have been deployed in hundreds of networks worldwide, outdoor and indoor, for the service providers, metro, public safety, government, energy, transportation, hospitality, education, enterprise, and residential markets. For more information about Strix Systems, please visit www.strixsystems.com.

Citi WiFi Networks is a market leader in metro-scale Wi-Fi and WiMax mesh networks. Our mission is to enable wireless broadband access everywhere through innovative joint partnerships with government municipalities and the private-sector. Our unique expertise includes RF engineering, designing, deploying and operating high-performance mesh networks. Citi WiFi Networks’ mobile platform will support not only data as well as voice, video, RFID, AMR and many other exciting and productive technologies. Citi WiFi Networks is headquartered in St. Petersburg, FL.